Newbie question about C coding and SDK for iPhone app

Question

Hello,
I am interested in trying to create an app. However, I have NO experience writing code I already have downloaded and installed the latest version of the SDK.
I know I have to learn: C, Objective C, and Cocoa.
I just picked up "C for Dummies" as a starting point. I figured the K&R might be a bit overwhelming to start with. Thing is, "C for Dummies" suggests doing some exercises in Text Edit and then using GCC to compile and test. But, then again, it has a copyright of 2004--long before Snow Leopard.
My question is, do I really need to do the exercises in Text Edit? Can I just use Xcode for entering the code and testing it? And, any suggestions for learning C and Xcode tutorials are greatly appreciated.
Thanks!!

Answer 1

But, I really want to learn coding and not just take the easy route by using Xcode.
The simplification of using Xcode may have been a bit exaggerated throughout this thread. You will still learn how to program full-on by using Xcode -- it's not like you're taking a shortcut or anything. Well, technically speaking, you are, but Xcode is the expected way to develop on a Mac nowadays -- it's how Apple expects you to develop and how most people are doing so. Should you choose, you can taking a deeper dive into the inner workings of compiling and whatnot by using a text editor and the Terminal, but keep in mind that the extra complexities here could complicate the more important overall goal of learning the basics of how to program. There is absolutely nothing wrong with simply using Xcode for the novice part of your programming days. In fact, it's probably the path I would recommend. Some here might suggest that it is beneficial to learn the intricacies of compiling through the Terminal and whatnot early on, and they are right -- it is beneficial, but the benefits of taking a route (at least for the time being) that allows you to focus on the more pressing issues of learning how to program without having to delve too deeply can be just as beneficial. After all, it's not like you can't go back and learn how to compile via Terminal later on -- that's what I've done (or, rather, am in the process of doing).
I always thought Terminal was something not to mess with.
Not so much. Like most things in programming (or life, for that matter), the Terminal is something not to mess with +if you don't know what you're doing+. Basically, it breaks down like this. The GUI that Apple has created for you in Mac OS X (by GUI I mean "graphical user interface" -- the icons and windows and buttons and so forth that you use to perform tasks on your Mac -- in other words, everything outside the Terminal) is geared toward the common user who does not need to access advance aspects of the system's functionality. Consequently, it makes common tasks much simpler to perform, but in the process it hides some of the deeper levels of the system's functionality from the user. This is a good thing, since most people wouldn't know what to do with this functionality and would create problems for themselves if they did have easy access to it. However, for some users who know more about the inner workings of the operating system, there needs to be a way for them to access this functionality, so that they can do certain things (like accessing certain files and performing certain tasks) that they would not be able to do using the Mac OS X GUI -- that's what the Terminal is for. It allows the user to operate the system on a lower level. In other words, it allows you to get closer to the operating system. This is good in a way, because it allows you to perform tasks that you wouldn't otherwise be able to perform by giving you more control over the operating system, but it is also bad in a way, because it can allow you to mess up some of the deeper aspects of your system if you don't know what you are doing. Most people leave the Terminal alone for this reason, and because they have no need of it, but if you want to be a good developer, you're going to have to work with it sooner or later.
Now, with all that being said, it's not that easy to mess things up using the Terminal. It's not like your system's going to crash if you misspell a command. All in all, the Terminal is very forgiving, but it will do what you tell it to do, even if you tell it to kill itself, and it is for that reason that you need to know what you are telling it before you try to tell it something. If you understand what you are telling the system, than operating on a lower level and being closer to the operating system is completely safe.
The Mac OS X operating system is based around Unix, so when you are communicating more directly with the operating system by using the Terminal, you are interacting with its Unix core. For this reason, using the Terminal goes hand in hand with understanding Unix. So, if you're going to want to use the Terminal, then I recommend you get a good book on Unix to teach you the basics of Unix commands and shell programming and whatnot. Any book on Unix will do, since more or less everything you learn will be applicable to the Mac OS X's Terminal, but there are a few that are specifically directed to Mac OS X users, and that always makes things easier. Most of these books aren't updated to cover past Tiger, but this really doesn't matter (someone correct me if I'm wrong). A few examples are O'Reilly's "Learning Unix for Mac OS X Tiger" by Dave Taylor or Peachpit Press's "Unix for Mac OS X Tiger" by Matisse Enzer. Also, the book "Unix Programming Environment" by Kernighan and Pike is an excellent book on Unix, although fairly outdated, so I would highly recommend it, although I would recommend it as a supplement to another, more recent, Mac-based Unix book and not as your primary source for learning Unix. The skills you will acquire from these books will help you later if not sooner, so I recommend giving one of them a read at some point, whether you are planning on compiling using the Terminal right now or not.
Anyways, I hope this helped to clear some of this up for you, and please let us know if you have any further questions.